Kevin

The stiffness comes from the bend point down to the tip.

The tip trimming is based on the head weight. The 5w shaft you put on a 3w plays a little stiffer in the 3w than it would in a 5w, because the 3w head is lighter than the 5w.

If you want the same shaft to go into your 5w, and feel the same as the 3w, then you will probably need to tip trim it for a 7w then cut to length.

The butt trim, cutting to length, won't make much difference.

I believe this is called hard stepping, making the shaft play a little stiffer. Soft stepping would be tip trimming for a 3w and putting the shaft in a 5w, making it play a little softer.

Hi Quintin,

So, my 6.5 shaft from my 5 wood plays stiffer in my 3 wood because the head is lighter.

Would then my 7.0 shaft from my 3 wood play softer in my 5 wood because of the heavier head?

The reason I ask is because I'd like my 3 wood and 5 wood to feel more similar...they feel clearly different because of the different shafts.

Or perhaps I could add weight to the 3 wood head to make the 7.0 'feel' softer?

Thanks, Kevin

Yes if the shaft was tipped for a 3w and you put a 5w on it, it will be softer.

If a 7.0 soft stepped will be the same as a 6.5 hard stepped, I don't know.